Boston College and University of Michigan, South Africa
Mission
Statement
We are team Ubuntu, consisting of three college students dedicated to empowering children through education. We believe that knowledge is a right, and that learning does not start nor stop in the classroom. Following the Ubuntu philosophy: "I am what I am because of who we all are," our team's mission is to work alongside the children to strengthen communities. We have chosen to work in Cape Town, where one member has both studied abroad and has had extensive volunteer experience. It is important to us that children in large, urban areas are not forgotten in this effort. Computers and Internet access are not necessarily accessible to children in Gugulethu Township.
Goals
- Successfully incorporate the Ubuntu and OLPC philosophies, which speak strongly to our group
- Incorporate the 100 XO laptops' launch as an extension of our NGO's Computer Skills Development Program
- Train the children how to use their XOs through exploration and experimentation
- Address xenophobia, by fostering a vibrant environment of research, artistic expression, exchange of views, and dynamic learning
- Develop relationships with other OLPCorps Africa teams in South Africa, and work towards greater saturation through a strong support network
- Further technology education in Cape Town by working with local children
- Help plant the seed of this international movement to promote and enhance child education
Proposal
We are team Ubuntu, comprised of three college students dedicated to empowering children through education.The strength and uniqueness of our team is enhanced by the diversity of each members' experience and background.
Two members of the team have traveled to Africa in the past to volunteer. Maxine studied abroad for six months at the University of Cape Town. We have chosen to work in Gugulethu, a township outside of Cape Town. We will be working alongside one hundred 11-12 year old at risk 5th grade students.
Fortunately, English is the main language in this area so there will be no language barrier. Despite Cape Town’s development, many children in the surrounding area are just as underprivileged as those in more rural townships. All three team members will arrive in Cape Town on June 18th. Maxine plans on staying in South Africa for a year to help maintain the project. Noémie will stay in Cape Town until the 23rd of August, and Max will leave earlier but will serve as an advisor and will remain in constant communication with the rest of team.
Our deserving partner NGO is Ikamva Labantu, which means “the future of our nation” in Xhosa. It is a well-established organization dedicated to helping develop self-reliant and sustainable community-based organizations to facilitate positive social change. We also plan on working with an art collective in Guglethu called The Guguletive, that Maxine worked alongside, to integrate art into the learning process.
The students begin winter break a week after we arrive. We plan on networking the Gugulethu Rainbows Community Center taking full advantage of the mesh networking capabilities of the laptops. Unfortunately, many Internet Service Providers do not cover Gugulethu. However, we are currently researching the most effective setup and are in contact with the select few providers who do cover the area. Connecting the children to the Internet is one of our main priorities, as we firmly believe that access to information is essential.
We plan to hold classes every weekday. The curriculum will be project based, conducted in tandem with exploring and experimenting with their new laptop. The focus of the projects will be xenophobia and the impact that intolerance has had on their community, country, and the world at large. We will enrich the projects by incorporating aspects of South African society and history such as last year’s violence against Zimbabweans, the current controversy over the Dalai Lama’s attendance of the peace conference, and the commotion over hosting the upcoming World Cup.
When school is back in session, we will meet with the students and work on weekly projects. Many of the projects topics and designs will be decided by the children with our guidance, providing them autonomy and control over their learning environment. They will be encouraged to use their computers to research their own curiosities and/or a topic that coincides with their curriculum.
Max will lead a series of computer-based lessons. Initially, he will hold a basic computer literacy discussion where he will teach the students how to use the laptops. Later in the endeavor, he plans on teaching a programming class in Scratch. This will be an engaging class that will help develop the children’s cognitive abilities.
We have already secured a sponsor, A Small Orange, who has generously offered to host our website. In addition, we plan on introducing the students to Twitter so we can stay in touch with them after our departure and so that they can micro-blog. The team will put up a website at UbuntuProject.org to both document the teams experiences and display the students’ works. The website will be powered by Wordpress, an open-source content management system. We strongly believe that the education and infrastructure we provide will empower the children and in turn, the community.
Helen Lieberman, the director of Ikamva Labantu, is in full support of our proposal. Moreover, she is confident that with our help, her organization will be able to sustain the developments we leave and continue to support the children. We are also forming a support network for teams deploying in South Africa. Moreover, we are working with the Boston College Office of International Studies, as well as University of Michigan's International Center, to recruit students who study abroad in Cape Town and who would like to volunteer, so that they can be directed to Ikamva Labantu. For financial support we will fundraise through our universities' resources.
NGOs
Ikamva Labantu
Ikamva Labantu has been successfully running for over 45 years. We find that Ikamva Labantu's approach to sustainable development, through community empowerment, is an ideal match for the mission of OLPC. Furthermore, it is an ideal NGO to supervise the distribution and maintenance of the 100 XO laptops, as it has the program organization capable of sustaining it far beyond our stay. Ikamva Labantu runs projects that serve over 18,000 children in the Cape Province, and offers counseling and family services, which will help foster family and community involvement in the initiative. For a better understanding of the organization, please watch this video.
Ikamva Labantu has written us a letter of support. You can view it in DOC or PDF format. We have also uploaded a scan of the original document.
Gugulective
Gugulective is art art collective based in Gugulethu township. The artists work together in their community with children to inspire creativity and social action. Their art work speaks for a need for change and their exhibitions are powerful and inspiring. Maxine worked with them while abroad and is looking forward to collaborating with them again this winter in South Africa. Their gallery in Gugulethu is easily accessible to us and to our students. We will work with them as the students explore art as an expression for change. We will also post the students' works on our website for the world to see. We expect to have multiple workshops on art and social action.
Budget and Fundraising
Please see an outline of our expenses and fundraising goals here.
Support And Saturation
We will have the support from other teams in South Africa. We have contacted and been in communication with several groups about a support network for the members, as well as creating a blog where we can all post the students' work. The students can then share their information with children throughout South Africa and we will have a network to refer to in the event of any questions, if we seek advice or want to collaborate.
Max has been in contact with OLPC’s Seth Woodworth, who has connected him to a student in Ann Arbor, Michigan who owns an XO laptop so that Max can get his hands on one. Max has been able to emulate the XO operating system and already has begun experimenting with it.
Sharing the computers with family members and friends, the children will help spread the ideas that they will learn during our workshops. Also, family members can benefit from the use of the laptops and their connectivity, with the guidance of the children. Furthermore, the students will have the time to communicate with each other outside the classroom. They will be able to ask each other questions and collaborate with one another in preparation for the next session, with the XO computers.
Location
Gugulethu is a township outside of Cape Town, South Africa. <googlemap version="0.9" lat="-33.975681" lon="18.570843" type="satellite" zoom="7" controls="large"> -33.983608, 18.568796, Guguletu, Nyanga -33.983608, 18.568796, Guguletu, Nyanga </googlemap>
